Pokemon Grand Sun
by Monologous
Summary: His sister promised Darren they'd battle one day, as equals, when she left to join the Elite Four of Rorel. Join him as he journeys across the region with his friend and fellow trainer Prairie to have that promise fulfilled!
1. Chapter 1 : Setting Sun

**A Fan Fiction based on a game I thought of, Pokemon Grand Sun.**

** Takes Place in the region of Rorel, north-west of Hoenn. there won't be any new Pokemon except two legendary Pokemon that'll be revealed later in the series, if I get that far that is.**

**Disclaimer - I do NOT own Pokemon in any way. The only thing belonging to me are the original characters/OCs**

Chapter 1

"Wait… what is that thing again?" Sandy asked, pointing at a weird-looking white Pokeball the shop clerk had placed in front of her. "It's a Premier Ball. It's a reward given to trainers who show great support to the Pokeball Company." replied the clerk, placing the bundle of 10 Pokeballs Sandy had asked for just now on the counter. Rubbing his hands together, he started typing on the cash register. "That'll be 2000 Pokedollars please, Miss." he said. "No charge for this… Premier Ball, then?" Sandy asked. "Nope." the clerk replied.

She walked out of the Poke Mart with her purchase and looked around for her friend. Prairie was resting on a bench opposite of the Poke Mart, taking sips from her Lemonade and reading some of the facts written in the book titled "Basic Knowledge of a Pokémon Trainer!". She was about to start her read on the evolution of Pokémon when Sandy called out for her. "Time to go home…" she thought, closing the book and placing it some other books, before picking all of them up. She dropped the empty bottle of lemonade into the trash bin beside the bench, and then walked towards her friend.

Prairie saw the bundle of Pokeballs her friend had in her left hand. "New Pokeballs?" she asked. "I'm thinking of taking a walk around Berry Forest tomorrow…" replied her friend. "Maybe catch a new Pokémon along the way."

"Berry Forest? It can be pretty dangerous in there sometimes." Prairie said, concerned. "Don't worry, with Swell by my side I'll be fine." replied Sandy, holding the Pokeball containing Swell, her Swallow, in her right hand. "Why don't you come along?"

"I'd like to, but I have to hand my report to Mr. Pine tomorrow." she said, grunting at the dreaded task of writing reports. "Bibidy's going to have to wait for next time."

Prairie felt something amiss as she walked. She ran her hands through the multiple books she was carrying. Then she realized something. Her class notebook wasn't among them.

"Oh no."

"What is it?" her friend asked, feeling around her Pokeball a bit. "My notebook… I think I left it at the Pokémon Center when I went to patch Bibidy up." Prairie replied, picking the edges of the books just to make sure. "Well then, let's go get it." her friend suggested, putting her Pokeball back into her pocket. "No, no. You should go home. I'll go get it myself. You don't want your mom nagging again, do you?"

"What? That's nonsense. I'm not going to be late. Let's just run to the Pokémon center, grab your notebook, and take off for home. You know the sun's about to go down, and wild Pokémon may stray into town. " The girl agreed. Looking over the trees, the sun was nearing the horizon. "Ok, thanks. I shouldn't have been so careless… Let's just hope it's still there." As agreed, the two girls ran to the Pokémon center. When the Center door opened, Prairie ran straight into a boy. The books she had with her were scattered around them. Prairie was knocked back a bit, but Sandy managed to back her up. She didn't have time to worry about herself, though. The boy she had run into was sent falling on his back, his head hitting the floor with a loud thud.

"Gyaah! I'm so sorry!" blurted the black-haired girl, kneeling down to help the boy up. She bit her lip looking at him. By the sound of impact, he'd have a headache until tomorrow, she thought. The boy had messy, spiky hazel hair, and black eyes. The first thing that stood out was his overcoat. She'd never seen clothing like it, making it apparent he was a passing trainer. It was dark blue with silver linings, and a sling bag was beside his waist, hung across his body. He wore deep blue trousers that matched his overcoat. Out of all the trainers she'd seen pass the town, his attire was the oddest. But was he even a trainer? Prairie scanned his clothing for any sign of Pokeballs, and found none. She was brought back to the fact that he's hurt when she saw him clench his teeth. She felt stupid for ignoring his ordeal.

The boy sat up, rubbing the back of his head with a painful look on his face for a short while. He noticed the books sprawled around him, and went and picked them up. Grabbing the last book, he held them out to Prairie, scratching the back of his head with a look on his face that said "sorry". Prairie snatched the books quickly, still feeling stupid and guilty.

"Um…Are you okay? I'm sorry, I was in a hurry, and I forgot something here and… um…" Prairie sheepishly tried to apologize, blushing a bit. The boy looked at her for a while, as if thinking about something, then reached into his coat and took out a familiar-looking notebook. "My notebook!" she remarked with joy. The boy handed it to her, smiled warmly, and left just like that. He left the two girls without a word. "Wow, he sure was tough." said her friend. "He should've been knocked out cold after hitting the floor that hard."

"I didn't even get to say thank you…" Prairie replied, feeling weird over the incident. "Well, we should head home." she continued.

They both checked their belongings, and then ran across town towards their homes. Their houses were built on the grass on the outskirts of Evenroad Town. Prairie loved it when the wind blew into her face and grass crunched beneath her feet. "Prairie! Wait, stop!" exclaimed Sandy suddenly. The two came to a halt. Prairie was shocked. Splayed across the green, beautiful grass was purple slime, filthy and putrid in smell.

"Well well well. I told you guys my little roadblock would catch us some quick cash." a voice spoke. The two girls turned around. A group of bikers stood with their machines, and the largest one was standing with his back to them.

"Hey there, little ladies. Cue ball at your service." smiled the largest one.

"What do you want?" spoke Prairie. This crowd was trouble, nothing less. She had taken out her Pokeball. Her friend followed suit. The cue ball smiled at this, taking out their Pokeballs was what he wanted them to do. Now they can't refuse a Pokémon battle, he thought.

"Your money, of course. And you two just agreed to hand them over to me!" laughed the cue ball, and the bikers started laughing after their leader. "Now, no matter what happens, you'll be forced to hand over your cash!" he exclaimed, taking out two Pokeballs. One releases the scorpion Pokémon Drapion, while the other releases the skunk Pokémon Skuntank. The girls were worried. Evolved Pokémon were strong. But they might have a chance, Prairie thought; as they have an evolved Pokémon on their side as well, thinking of Sandy's Swellow.

Sandy, however, didn't actually want to have a Pokémon battle. Prairie told her that if they wanted to avoid battle they'd have to hand over all their money, and who knows what else these bikers would be up to. Prairie held out her Poke ball. "Bibidy! I choose you!" she exclaimed, releasing a Bidoof from its ball. The bikers laughed even harder. Sandy got irritated. She released her Swellow. "Come on, if you lose, you better get out of here on the double!"

"Very well, ladies… Let's get this party started!"


	2. Chapter 2 : Seeping Poison

**Disclaimer - I do NOT own Pokemon in any way. The only thing belonging to me are the original characters/OCs**

Chapter 2

Drapion's tail started to glow with a silver light."I'll be a gentleman and make it quick." the cue ball taunted. Prairie just returned his look with her own look of disgust. His Drapion jumped forward and swung its glowing tail at the Bidoof. "**Iron Tail**!" yelled the cue ball. It was a pretty famous move because of its power, and many tailed Pokémon would often have it in tow, thought Prairie. She's read about it, and she knew it had a good flaw. It wasn't very prone to hitting. Bibidy easily jumped over the tail as it passed. "Bibidy, **Tackle**!" yelled Prairie to her Pokémon. It did some damage, but not even close to faulting the Drapion. The cue ball was still wearing the smirk on his face, and it was causing Prairie to boil inside.

Skuntank reached Swellow with a **Slash**, causing some good damage, making Sandy anxious. She couldn't bear to see her Swell get badly hurt. But she knew had to get a grip on the battle if she didn't want it to happen. "Swell, **Wing Attack**!" Swell dodged another attack, and went in for its attack. But the skunk proved to be too great an opponent. It easily dodged, then smeared Swell with a powerful dose of **Sludge Bomb**, causing it to fall to the ground and faint. Sandy came to her Pokémon's side, worried for its safety.

Seeing her Bidoof's teammate faint, Prairie got angry. "Bibidy! **Hyper Fang**!" she exclaimed. Bibidy dodged Drapion's claws with agility. Going below it, the Bidoof jumped into the air and bit its opponent in the back. At first it seemed like Drapion was stopped in its tracks, but suddenly it struck out at Bibidy with its tail. The small, agile Pokémon jumped away to gain distance, but Drapion can be quick. Before the Bidoof can even land on the ground, Drapion struck again with **Cross Poison**, sending the mouse Pokémon slamming into a tree trunk, ending their fight.

"No… Bibidy!" thought Prairie, running towards her Pokémon with concern. The Bidoof was groaning in pain, unable to move anymore. "I don't get to be the main man for nothing, you know!" the cue ball remarked, pulling back his Pokémon into their Pokeballs. "…Fine! You win! Now take your prize money and leave." said Elaine, taking out some Pokedollars from her pocket and throwing them on to the ground without even looking. The cue ball motioned for his lackeys to move. They picked up the Pokedollars and handed them to their chief. The Cue ball decided it wasn't enough. "You posh girls should have more… hand them over." he said. Sandy, now keeping Swell safe inside her Pokeball, walked over to Prairie and her Bidoof. "Unless you take your money in Pokeball form, you can go." Sandy showed him her bundle of Pokeballs. "Maybe I'll go… but what about you two?" grinned the cue ball a sinister grin, pointing towards something behind them. They turned around. Two bikers were standing behind them. "You can give us your money as 'fees' for using this road… Or we can take them by force. Better think quickly, the sun's about to go down."

"Err… chief…" whispered one of the bikers, looking over his shoulder. Grass crunched beneath a pair of shoes. The cue ball can see a figure walking in the darkness. The figure stepped out into the dim light of the setting sun.

"An… overcoat…" thought Prairie, gazing at the boy she'd run into earlier. "You better get the heck out of here kid, if you know what's good for you." threatened the cue ball. The boy remained silent. His hand reached into his coat, something Prairie and Sandy had seen him do before. Only this time, what he took out was a Pokeball. "Oh… Well this is dandy. More cash." the cue ball chuckled, taking out his own Pokeball. The two bikers got out of the way of the battle. "Go, K-Tank!" he released the skunk Pokémon. The boy threw the Pokeball into the air. Out came a petite gray Pokémon with a single small spike on its back. It had small, stubby legs and a large, round head full of holes. Two big blue eyes peered out from two of the holes. Sandy found it cute. Prairie was trying to find out what it is. The bikers laughed at it. Their leader laughed as well, noticeably harder.

"What is this? Kindergarten championship?" the cue ball laughed. "That wee baby of a Pokémon of yours is only good for cute contests, kid!"

Prairie kept on thinking. She'd seen the small Pokémon somewhere in a book before. It was from Hoenn, she thinks. She finally got it. It was an Aron.

"An Aron." she said. "Aron?" asked Sandy.

"It's a Steel type, and its power really doesn't match its size." Prairie continued, knowing what it could do with a full charge.

The Aron turned to look at the boy. The boy gave a set of signals of some sort with his fingers. The Aron nodded. "Hey kid! Didn't you teach it to focus in battle?" yelled the cue ball. The Skuntank charged at the Aron. Aron charged at the Skuntank. When the two was about to hit each other, the Aron lowered its head. Skuntank kept on going, and right before it could slam into the small Pokémon, the Aron raised its large head and head butted the Skuntank right in the cranium. The skunk gave out a loud cry and jumped back. It was infuriated. Prairie could see the smirk on the cue ball's face disappear. She smiled.

"What the… It could hurt my K-Tank that badly? Go, Ion!" yelled the cue ball, sending out his Drapion.

"That's not fair!" Prairie yelled, realizing what the large man had done.

"No time for regrets, kid!"

The boy didn't respond. His calm demeanor didn't change. He had given the layout of the battle and his orders to his Aron, Gran, and he need not do anything else. Gran was the latest addition to his team, and that very same Pokémon taught him that size does not matter. "It would help if he was more

"You're… not worried one bit? I might just actually kill that little thing of yours!"

"…"

"Grr… No mute kid is gonna beat me! Get that thing!"he gritted his teeth. What was this? Was he actually scared of this kid? He was too calm, too collected. He's looking at me as if I'm no more than a preschooler, the cue ball thought. "And that silence, that goddamn silence!" he raged on inside his mind. Skuntank and Drapion charged towards the boy's Aron on their master's order. Gran didn't bother moving. He believed in his master. Skuntank filled its throat with sludge while Drapion readied its claws.

**_Cross Poison!_**

**_Sludge Bomb!_**

The two attacks hit the Aron simultaneously. The sludge created a poisonous puddle on the ground. With Gran right in the middle of it. Everyone anticipated the cue ball to laugh again, but instead he looked on with an agape mouth. The small Steel Pokémon walked out of the puddle just like that, and shook off the extra sludge that was stuck to its small spike.

"It… I don't think it got hurt at all!" remarked Prairie.

Seeing that the two Pokémon were done, Gran charged towards his first target – Skuntank. Still surprised, K-tank wasn't able to react until Gran smashed heads with it, sending it staggering and falling onto its side. The Drapion lashed out with its claws at the Aron, but it wasn't nearly as effective as what the Steel Pokémon was about to do at the Poison Pokémon. Scratching one of its stubby forelegs into the ground, Gran slapped some mud straight into the Drapion's eyes, making it flip out.

"_Drapppiiiiiii!_" cried the Drapion, unable to see clearly.

"Did it just use **Mud-Slap**? Not good…" the cue ball pulled back his skunk Pokémon.

The Aron ran in circles around it. Drapion lashed out again; it missed. Aron kept on using Mud-Slap, and Drapion kept missing, rinse and repeat, until finally, the Drapion fell on its back, its eyes in a swirling pattern. The cue ball pulled back his Pokémon. He wasn't as large and tough now. His shoulders were brought low and his face was in disbelief. His pride had been crushed, he thought.

"How dare that twerp do that to our chief!" yelled one of the bikers. "Let's get him!" yelled another.

Before they can move, the cue ball raised his hand to stop them. His eyes were fixed forward on the light coming out of the boy's Pokeball. The boy had already released another Pokémon of his; a large, purple Pokémon with holes around its body. Its mouth was so huge one of the bikers was scared it might just eat his bike.

"Well done, kid. I admit my defeat. Don't worry about my boys here; pull back your Pokémon."

"…" with both hands holding a Pokeball the boy withdrew his two Pokémon.

"I see… You're one weird kid." he turned to the girls. "Have your money back. You can thank him." he placed the notes on the ground. They just looked at him with bitter faces.

"Look out, I might just get it back. Because this isn't over. I'll take you on another day, and for that I'll need your name. " he said, pointing at the boy. The boy didn't respond. He nodded to his two Pokémon with a faint smile, then kept them safe in his coat. He walked over to the cue ball slowly. The bikers started to move closer in case he was going to do something. He took out a notepad from his coat. He unattached a pen at the side, and wrote something.

*Gichi gichi* He showed the notepad to the cue ball.

The cue ball was puzzled for a bit, but then grinned when he read the name on the notepad. "I see. Better start training, Darren. My name is Perez. And I'll make sure my Pokémon has more sting the second time we battle." he said, turning around and walking away, through his group of bikers. The boy smiled. The bikers kept looking at their boss, then at the kid, then back at their boss, all the while sweat dripping from their foreheads.

"What the heck are you losers waiting for? Time to get out of here on the double!" he yelled, smiling to the girls, grinning, as if saying '_see that, the cue ball just kept his word_'. The bikers followed their leader and got on their machines. They rode into the falling night.

Her Bidoof was all fine. The berry she carried just in case had taken effect. She pulled it back into its safe Pokeball, heaving a sigh of relief. She couldn't believe what had just happened. She squinted to look at the boy that just helped her and Sandy out of a bad mess. He was amazing, she thought.

The boy threw another Pokeball, and suddenly the two girls could see their faces again. Beside the boy's feet was a slim weasel-like Pokémon with flames coming out of its back. It hid behind its master's leg, looking at the two girls, its nose sniffing, as if checking on them. The boy walked towards the two, his Pokémon following closely, and held out his two hands. They took his hands. He pulled them up.

"Thank you, Darren. For a lot of things." said Prairie. She finally managed to thank him, she thought. And how he deserved it. "Can you…uh… take us home?" she pointed her thumb at the light of houses somewhere in the distance. Darren nodded. "Great battle by the way." spoke Sandy, her eyes glinting with a hint of admiration. They started their walk in the darkness of night, guided by Darren's little Quilava. A lot happened, but Prairie just wanted to call it a day. She knew it herself, though, that when tomorrow comes she's meeting Darren again.


	3. Chapter 3 : Bumbling Delivery

**Disclaimer - I do NOT own Pokemon in any way. The only thing belonging to me are the original characters/OCs**

Chapter 3

"Well, it's been one day late, I know, but fret not Darren my boy. The package will come today, I'm sure of it." said the elderly man on the screen.

Darren just nodded, silently sighing. "I guess I shouldn't be in such a hurry anyway..." the boy thought. "Look, I'm sorry to have put you through this errand. I understand you wish to challenge the-" the old man was stopped by Darren writing something on his pocket notepad. He ripped off the page he'd written on and placed it against the screen.

"It's okay; you know what's happened at the League right now. I can wait for the package for as long as it takes, Prof." was written on the page. Done reading it, Professor Locust slumped in his lab chair, sighing himself. "…Fine, fine. But I want you to wait for it for only two days. If it hasn't arrived until then, I'll pick it up myself. You have to start the Gym Challenge, Darren. The League isn't going to stop their activities to look for her for too long. Good bye, and good luck." he said. Darren nodded. They closed the PCs each of them was using.

The door slid open, and Darren walked out. His watch showed 10.00 pm. "Better head for the Postal HQ first." he thought, heading off. Passing an electrical store, the showcased television sets featured a woman telling her viewers about the settlements of Rorel. A very large map of the region is displayed behind her, with blinking black and red dots representing the cities and towns.

"Evenroad Town is famous for its cross-regional postal services, highly regarded to soon replace the traditional practice of attaching mail to Pokémon in some of the regions. The service not only sends mails, though, but also offers postal services for a wide range of items! Settled between the lush Berry Forest and the Drift Valley, trainers from all over pass this cozy town every day, on their way to the eastern half of the region. Its humble and friendly townsfolk are also makes up another positive for Evenroad. To the northeast is quite possibly the most well-known city in Rorel; Granville City! The bustling city was named after a legend from decades ago, revolving around a special Granbull which was clad in golden fur…" the woman continued to go on.

At that time, two blue trucks were making their way towards Evenroad.

"Okay gang, we'll arrive in Evenroad in a few hours. The plan's simple, so don't screw up. Just in case, 15 minutes before arrival I'll go over the plan again. The main thing to remember is that failure is success." the man chuckled. In the other truck, a woman told the people around her the very same thing. She, however, refrained from chuckling on her last sentence.

Back in Evenroad, Darren waited in line at the Postal HQ to check on the status of his package. "No… it's not in yet. Package KC261 is probably still on its way, sorry. It says here that there were technical difficulties back at Kanto's Postal HQ." was all he got from the clerk when he finally reached the counter. Darren nodded with a thanking smile on his face, and the clerk replied with her own smile, knowing the boy had came asking for his package numerous times since yesterday afternoon. The first few times he came, he had to communicate using his notepad, her colleagues had told her. That's why when he walked in this time she knew what he was looking for. "Must be something really important, huh? Tell you what, write down your PokeNav number. When Package KC261 comes I'll give you a call." the clerk said.

Darren wrote down his number and handed it to the clerk, leaving with a large smile on his face. The clerk looked at his number as Darren walked out and noticed the words "Thank you" on the bottom, smiling herself.

"That's very kind of her…" thought Darren. "Now I won't have to check for it every 2 hours. I can do something else… But what?" he remembered the girl he helped out yesterday. He's just about to leave for the Pokemon Center, putting on his shoes on the doorstep, when suddenly, Prairie came to him with her bandage-covered Bidoof sleeping in her arms. "You're staying at the Pokemon Center for the night? So you'll be in town for another day, right?" Darren nodded. "Can you come and meet me tomorrow afternoon? I have something I want to bother you with." she said jokingly, showing a weak smile. Darren nodded again, a smile on his face. "Thanks, Darren. I… should get to bed now." she said, feeling her head getting heavier. She turned for the stairs and waved at him before walking up to her room.

"That settles it then. It's not even 11 yet, though… so I might just have to-" thought Darren before he heard somebody calling out to him. He turned towards the voice. He smiled with surprise to see Prairie running up to him.

"Haha, I thought you were still at the Pokémon Center. I went to heal Bibidy, you see... Then I thought I'd look around for you. So you went to the Postal HQ. What were you doing in there?" Darren just smiled and rubbed the back of his head, not wanting to tell Prairie about the package. "I see… Never mind then. I know it's earlier than we'd agreed, but about that thing I wanted to bother you with… Well… I thought you did great yesterday, against that cue ball." she paused for while. "I hate to say this, but I'm nowhere near your league, even after doing so much reading. I need real experience, but only yesterday, when I was forced to fight, did I realize I lacked a lot of it. So would you be willing to be my training partner? Just for today." she looked away at one moment, as if embarrassed.

Darren's face grew a large smile. "Of course I would!" he thought, nodding almost immediately. "Wow… you would? Then… I guess we should head for Berry Forest, because… Hey!" Darren grabbed her hand and started running for the town entrance at the thought of getting in some battle training. "Wait, wait! Darren, Berry Forest is that way!"

In Berry Forest, a Swellow can be seen perching on the branch of a tree, having dodged an Aipom's **Fury Swipes**. "Swell, **Quick Attack**!" yelled its trainer. Aipoms were quick and agile. If she let Swell use high-powered attacks it might miss, maybe even let an opening for the Aipom to strike. The Swellow flew up from its perching position and swooped down at very high speed, ramming the Aipom right in the stomach, making it fall on its back. Seeing her chance, Sandy threw a Pokeball at the monkey Pokémon. It opened, pulling the Pokémon into it with a flash of light. At first the Pokeball rolled around a bit, but then it stopped moving, prompting Sandy to pick it up with a look of content on her face. She looked up at her Swellow, back to its perching position. "Come on Swelly, we've got more training to do." her Swellow flew down and onto her shoulder. Sandy smiled at the fact that the bird still managed to land there; it's a habit the bird Pokémon took on when it was a small Taillow. She went through the bushes, keeping an eye out for wild Pokémon.

On the other side of the forest, Darren looked up at the sea of trees in front of him. Peering inside the forest, then pulling his head back outside, it felt like he was bordering on two different worlds. The trees, swaying to the wind cast shadows on the ground that move as if they were alive. Compared to the open area they were in, the Forest seemed very dark, as if it was night. "What are you doing?" asked Prairie, puzzled by his antics.

*Gichi gichi gichi* wrote Darren on his notepad. Moments later Prairie grabbed a paper plane that Darren threw her way. "What's this?" she asked. Darren did an unfolding motion with his hands. Prairie mimicked him, unfolding the paper plane. Inside was written his suspicions that the Berry Forest is a part of another world. "So this is how you communicate?" she asked, looking at him. He shrugged with a polite smile on his face. "No, I didn't mean it that way… It's a nice way to do so, actually. Sorry." again, Darren shrugged, not feeling anything out of her remark.

"Berry Forest is another great mystery of the region. In here, berries grow twice, sometimes even up to thrice their normal growth rate. And they can grow just about everywhere. All these tall trees you see, you can pluck all kinds of berries from any one of them. Hence it was named Berry Forest, with berries abundant in every tree, every day. There are tales about Celebi appearing in this very forest from time to time. But it's not the one causing the fast growth rate of the berries. They say Celebi is actually attracted by the air of the forest." Prairie explained, leading Darren to a clearing in the middle of the forest. "Sometimes, people also say Pokémon tend to grow stronger faster in here. " she said, turning to Darren. "Based on your look… I guess you find this place interesting too huh?" remarked Prairie, smiling at the expression on Darren's face. He nodded, admitting to the fact that the forest sounds pretty cool.

"Shall we start?" the girl took out her Pokeball. Darren nodded, doing the same.

**Thanks for the helpful review, Shiny.  
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	4. Chapter 4 : Playing Hero

**Disclaimer - I do NOT own Pokemon in any way. The only thing belonging to me are the original characters/OCs**

Character's General Info

Darren - 16 year-old Pokemon Trainer that was simply training for the Gym Challenge when he caught a wandering Cyndaquil. It turned out to have been released by Professor Locust, whom he meets later. The two became friends quickly, and Prof. Locust believes he could trust Darren with an important task- retrieving a package due from Kanto. Lost his parents in an accident that also caused him his voice. Communicates through writing, aided by his unusually fast writing speed. His sister, Ella, is one of the Elite Four of Rorel.

Prairie - Sometimes called Pray, this spirited girl is just taking her first steps to become a Pokemon trainer. Once uninterested with all the rave surrounding Pokemon, it all changed when she befriended a hard-headed Bidoof. She's read quite the number of books, but she knows she'll need real experience to become a skilled trainer. She can get emotional sometimes, but usually keeps a level head in most situations.

Professor Andrew Locust - An Pokemon Professor that lives in his laboratory on the cliffs beside Aperire Town, Darren's home city. Years ago, an accusation held against him caused him to go into isolation, and his name sunk into abyss. Those who know him, however, acknowledged his research into the abilities and powers of Pokemon. Prof. Oak, one of said friends, have begun a new project with Prof. Locust - involving a new Pokedex. He was once a skilled Pokemon Trainer, specializing in Bug Pokemon. The death of one his Pokemon caused him to start researching the extent and limits of Pokemon and their powers. He seems to know Alder from Unova.

Chapter 4

The clock showed 4 in the evening. The female clerk inspected the newly arrived mail and packages in the Postal HQ's inventory. She smiled when she found a package with the numbers 'KC 261'. How happy the boy would be, she thought. "Let's see... What was his number again?" she reached into her pockets. She had just begun dialing Darren's number when she heard shouts and screams from outside. "What on earth..." her coworker started for the doors when they suddenly burst open, sending him sprawling to the floor. He shrieked when he opened his eyes to see a large yellow spider directly in front of his face. He fumbled to get up while the Galvantula scurried back to its master. The man, clad in a black coat and sunglasses, walked inside with two men following behind. He took off his sunglasses before motioning to his men to close the doors.

"Excuse me, miss, but there's a package here I would like to retrieve." the man turned to the clerk inside the counter, who had hidden her PokeNav behind her, slowly continuing to dial Darren's number.

"What... what kind of package?"

"Small, rectangular, and unbreakable - due to its protective holds." he said, slipping the folded glasses into his coat. The female clerk just kept quiet, but she knew she had to stall this man, whoever he is, until some sort of help could come. She can only hope help does come, because this man seemed dangerous.

"Oh... one more little thing - it has the registration numbers 'KC 261'." the man grinned.

Darren plopped himself onto the ground under the cool shade of a tree, tired. His Electrike joined him at his side, and the boy stroked its green fur, unaffected by the little sparks that fly off with each stroke. If he could talk, he would've said "Good workout, Strike. That last jump may have been a little bit over, but you did great.".

Prairie was picking up her Bidoof with her hands to raise it up into reach of another tree, so that it could pick a berry it's been eying for a while. When it came into reach, the Bidoof picked more than 6 of said berries with its nimble paws. Prairie chose not to mind - she considered them to be a reward for its hard work. She could feel herself getting good at battling already. It felt as if they'd been on a tutorial stage, thanks to the little paper planes Darren threw her way throughout their training. He sounded no less like a teacher. Sound. Prairie looked over her shoulder at Darren, resting under the tree with his Electrike, and wondered how his voice would sound like if he could speak. When she looked back at her Bidoof it had more than 18 berries stuffed inside its mouth. "Wha- hey! You can't take that much amount of berries! Spit them out now!" her Bidoof shook its head. "SPIT THEM OUT NOW!" she yelled, shaking her Bidoof up and down.

"Bibibibibibibiiiiiiiiii!(Help! Pokemon cruelty!)" cried her Bidoof.

Darren just smiled, amused at the comical scene. His Strike lifted an eyelid and grunted over the noise. Darren stopped smiling when he heard his PokeNav ringing in his overcoat. He took it out and looked at the screen.

"Oh, so it was yours... Who is it?" asked Prairie, putting her PokeNav back into her pocket."Um, ignore me, sorry." she added, forgetting for a moment about Darren's condition. Darren did just so. Because when he answered the call he heard the female clerk's voice. But she wasn't speaking to him. There was a man talking to her. And their topic of choice didn't look good.

"Package KC 261... Are you sure you got the numbers right?" sounded the clerk's voice.

"No doubt about it." replied the man.

"Are you sure the package really is yours?"

"Yes it is."

"Good, then you can show me the paperwork."

"I will, but I need to make sure the package really is in first."

"...You're lying. The package doesn't belong to you. You're not getting it."

Darren could hear the man sigh. At this time he already had gotten up on his feet, rousing his Electrike, and Prairie.

"Why'd you have to be such a troublesome wench? Just hand over the small thing and we'll be on our way. Then nobody would've gotten hurt."

"I think you mean _'Nobody will get hurt'_."

"No, I meant _nobody would've gotten hurt_." sounded the man. There were crackling sounds and the clerk started to scream, before Darren heard the sound of a thud, from the falling of her PokeNav onto the floor. He started to run through the path they followed earlier, headed for town. His Electrike followed behind. Not having time to ask, Prairie followed suit as well, with her Bidoof in her arms.

"Darren, wait up! What's wrong?" yelled Prairie from behind. Reaching the gates, Darren stopped and pulled Prairie into behind a tree just outside town. They took a peek from behind the tree. "What's going on...? The town is..."

"...full of them. Who are they?" Sandy thought, watching a man in black coat battle a trainer that refused to go inside. Minutes ago a group of people had come into town, brandishing their Pokémon and forcing the townsfolk and the trainers to get inside the buildings.

"I need to find help." she thought, watching as the fat trainer's Lickilicky fell on its back. She ran along the dirt path for the main road, looking over her shoulder to make sure none of them saw her. When she felt it was safe she quickened her pace. She ran into a person, fearing the worst as she fell onto her backside.

"Ouch, was a Gengar chasing your hide or something?" said the figure, rubbing his head.

The redhead looked up. It wasn't a figure in a black coat. Instead, it was a figure the whole town knew very well.

"Tre… Tremer!" Sandy exclaimed.

"Yeah, you got me. Now would you mind telling me what could've gotten you turning into a cannonball?"

"They're after something at the Postal HQ?" Prairie asked, clutching the piece of paper Darren tore to write on. "Whatever it is, it's something all right, with everything they're going through." Prairie kept away the Pokeball she'd place Bidoof in.

*Gichi gichi gichi* Darren wrote on his notepad. Prairie took a look at it.

"What? No! I'm not gonna stay here and wait!" she remarked in a low voice, not forgetting their situation. "People are getting hurt in there. Somebody has to stop them." he wrote.

"You saw how those trainers got their butt kicked! You can't go in alone!"

"…" he didn't reply. "I'll be fine. You go get help. We need time, and I'm going to steal some. If I create a large enough commotion, maybe even the one I heard on the PokeNav would have to show up himself." he wrote and showed to Prairie. "The one you heard?" she asked

"Probably their leader, whoever's behind all this." he wrote. A thought struck Prairie. "Their leader… Darren." she said, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"…?"

"Can you beat this guy?" she asked. Darren nodded. "Well… you're going to have to." she said, running off into town. "…!" Darren reached out his hand and opened his mouth as if to speak, but couldn't.

One of the shadows, a name Prairie had come up for them, saw her almost immediately. "There's another one loose here!" he yelled. "We can't let her bother our plan! Get her now!" soon, more than four of the black coats were after her. Prairie had to admit, this wasn't the brightest of plans. But she knew that drawing the attention of at least some of them would help Darren. She trusted him, and if he can put a beat down on their ringleader, they should run away. This kind of thing has happened in the other regions before, and the troublemakers always dispersed after their leader was defeated. Well, at least the newsflash said so. She hoped they were right. Athletic as she was, she couldn't keep running in circles forever. "Going to have to improvise…" she thought, turning into a corner.

"Tch, where are they coming from?" said one of the men. "The path should've been blocked… They're better be doing their job, darn it!" he thought. In the corner of his eye, a figure entered the town slowly. The expression on his face was unusual, he thought. It seemed blank, but with a slight hint of anger, or determination. He knew it wasn't the face of a normal person. "Who am I to be a poet…" he thought. "Hey! So you're our actor of the day?" he asked in a low voice.

"…" Darren didn't answer. "Good move… I guess we shouldn't really talk." the grunt said. This must be the guy, he thought. "By the way he walked in… and the look on his face… you can't say he's a scared citizen. Unusual clothing, but it fits as those of a trainer's. I can't be wrong." he thought, grabbing his Pokeball.

"Well then, we should start our little play." he remarked. "…?" Darren reached for his own Pokeball.

Inhaling, the grunt shouted loudly "**Who the hell do you think you are, kid! You shouldn't be poking your nose into other's affairs! You better make sure you have what it takes if you're gonna do just that!**" his voice can be heard throughout town. The trapped townsfolk, the trainers, the shadows, and even Prairie could hear the man's voice. "That's the signal… He's here." another grunt said to his group.

Darren was taken aback by this at first, but took no notice of it. This was probably intentional, Darren thought. "His friends would be here any moment now... " Darren threw his Pokeball into the air. Bright light escaped the Pokeball, along with his Exploud.

The grunt released his own Pokemon, an Electrode. "We can't pull any punches, alright?" the grunt said, grinning. Darren gave signals using his two hands, and the Exploud roared.

"Exploudddddddddddddd!" the roar shook the whole town. The grunt had to cover his ears. Exploud's voice settled down. "Hehe, this guy's good." the grunt thought, lowering his hands. "Electrode, Spark!" yelled the grunt. The ball Pokémon started to crackle with electricity and rolled towards Darren's Exploud at high speed. Exploud reached its hands out in front of it and stopped the rolling Electrode, ignoring the currents surging through its hands. Exploud heaved and threw the Electrode into the air before jumping into the air, grabbing the Electrode, and sending it hurling down towards the ground, like a basketball player doing a slam dunk. "Seismic Toss!" thought Darren, gripping his fists. Electrode smashed to the ground, creating a small crater. It rolled out of the crater, its face grimacing in pain. "Screech!" the grunt yelled. The Electrode grinded its teeth together, making a shrill sound. But it didn't affect Exploud, thanks to Soundproof. "Well that was one heck of a wrong move." the grunt thought. Exploud started inhaling, with the thought of returning the favor in mind. The holes in its back start to enlarge, and a shrill sound was released, flinching Electrode a bit. It couldn't concentrate. The grunt regretted seeing Static as a better choice at this point somewhat."Electrode, Spark one more time!"

Electrode sparked with electricity again, rolling towards Exploud. Exploud jumped into the air and, just as it got close, landed one of its feet on the ball Pokémon, creating another small crater in the dirt. The sparks disappeared, as Electrode could no longer fight.


End file.
